Battlefields Foundation working to create battlefield park in Toms Brook

TOMS BROOK, Va. (WHSV) - The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation is working toward creating a battlefield park in Toms Brook. The Foundation is preparing to close on an easement with Shenandoah County that would preserve an additional 123 acres of the battlefield there.

The easement will allow the public to access more of the battlefield that has been unavailable to this point through the Civil War trials at Shenandoah County Park.

“Toms Brook is kind of an unsung hero of Civil War Battlefields. It’s a great little town, one of the smallest towns in Virginia, it’s got great leadership they really embrace their history there and over the years we’ve preserved almost 1,000 acres of battlefield there,” said Keven Walker, CEO of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.

The Battlefields Foundation is working with the county and the town to preserve the land a create a battlefield park.

“The town really sees it as a major asset for them as they move into their future but development pressures are a very real thing in Toms Brook. So we’re working very hard to try to convince people that preservation is progress and preservation does bring economic vitality through tourism and they don’t have to rely on new rooftops for an economic future,” said Walker.

In addition to the increased battlefield access, the park will bring a number of enhancements to the visiting experience.

“It’s going to provide better access to the acres that are already open. It’s going to create a new parking area and trailhead and bridge across Toms Brook and a new height to view the Battlefield from that’ll be accessible from a new interpretive trial,” said Walker. “There’s a lot of land that’s going to be open to the public that currently isn’t and it’s also going to open a bunch of views even across lands that are not preserved that will give people a better understanding of the battle itself.”

The battlefield park will require more trailheads and signage leading up to the park as well as visitor amenities. The Battlefields Foundation also hopes to work with the Shenandoah County Parks and Rec Department to make upgrades to the parts of the battlefield that are already open to the public.

The Toms Brook Battlefield Park will be one of seven that the foundation will create up and down the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District. Walker said that the parks will help to further highlight the historical importance of the Valley and the Civil War.

“The nation was changed forever by what happened on our fields here in the Shenandoah Valley and opening these things to the public is not only going to help our economy through heritage tourism but it’s going to help our future by reminding people just how hard it’s been to be a republic,” he said.

The hope is for work on the Toms Brook Park to begin sometime in the summer. The other battlefield park locations will include Winchester, McDowell, Cross Keys, Port Republic, and New Market.

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